Penpals
by avengellie
Summary: Over the course of a year, pen-pails Clint and Natasha become closer and closer, eventually leading up to one of them flying across the world after graduation so they could finally meet. Things couldn't be more perfect. But you know what they say: 'Nothing lasts forever.'
1. January

January 1, 2014

Dear Natalia,

Hi! My name's Clint Barton. I guess I'm you're new pen-pal, huh? Well, e-mail pen-pal. But it's basically the same thing. I've always wanted a pen-pal! Last year one of the Spanish classes in my school did this thing where they all got a pen-pal from a Spanish speaking country. They sent letters all throughout the semester. I'd be jealous if it hadn't have been for a grade, haha.

You're from Russia, right? Crap, I don't know how good your English is… Just… Let me know if you can't read this (sorry if that's offensive? I really have no idea what things are like in Russia…) I'm from the USA in probably the most boring state in the whole country: Iowa. Don't get me wrong, I know the name sounds super exciting, but it's not. Basically the whole state is made up completely of _corn_. Ugh.

Anyways, I guess I should tell you some more about myself! I'm a high school senior, 17 years old. I've got blond hair and blue/grey eyes. I'm 5'11" (wait, you guys measure with cm, don't you? I guess then I'd be… 180.34 cm! According to Google!) I'm really into archery (I'm club president at my school) and (embarrassingly enough) gymnastics.

Enough about me, though! (Unless you have questions? Go ahead!) What about you? What's it like where you live? How old are you? What do you look like? What are your hobbies/interests?

I'm really looking forwards to hearing from you and sticking with this whole pen-pal thing finally!

Regards,

Clint

* * *

1 January, 2014

Clint,

Hey, Clint! I guess I should start this out by answering a few of your questions:

Yes, you're my new pen-pal! Yes, I'm from Russia. My English is completely fine, don't worry :). I grew up learning both English and Russian, so you should be fine, and no, your question wasn't offensive haha.

Alright, I live in Moscow, Russia, my name's Natalia Romanova, but you can just call me "Natasha" (that's my English name.) I'm _also_ 17 and (if Google is to be trusted) also a "high school senior". I think. I'm in my last year of secondary school. I'm 164.5 cm (I think that would be 5'4"?) and have long red hair and green eyes.

As far as hobbies go, I'm pretty involved with my schoolwork and studying. Other than that, I dance ballet, am _also_ in gymnastics, I like to read, and to practice with throwing knives.

Let me know if you have any other questions!

As far as a question for you goes… Hmm.

Okay: If money wasn't an issue and you could explore any part of Earth, where would you explore (and why?)

Talk to you soon! :)

Natasha

* * *

January 8, 2014

Dear _Natasha_,

Sorry it's taken a week to get back to you! We got _slammed_ with projects the second we got back to school. Seriously. Every single subject got like 3 projects each, I swear. Ridiculous.

God, you're so much more interesting than I am! Knife throwing?! That's so cool! Ugh, you're makin' me look bad here, Nat.

And oh, look at that, we're the same age and everything… ;) ;) ;)

Nah, I'm just kidding, I wouldn't try to flirt with you: you're clearly _way_ out of my league haha. It does make me feel better that I'm not the only nerd that's into gymnastics, though. Not that I'm calling you a nerd, no, but. Okay that kinda came out wrong :P It's just, everyone here is always like "Oh, you're in gymnastics? Haha what a loser!" so it's kind of nice to find someone else who does it, y'know?

Sorry, I'm getting all sappy and sentimental so early in :P

Oh god, okay, if money wasn't an issue… I would probably… Huh.

Maybe the rainforests in South America. Those seem pretty cool, I think. Money is stupid, though. Everything should just be free, don't you think? So no one goes hungry, everyone can go wherever they want without having to deal with the hassle?

Alright, and a question for you now! (Thinking of questions is always the hardest part...)

Boring, I know, but: what's your favorite time of day/why?

All the best!

Clint

* * *

11 January, 2014

Clint,

That's okay that it took so long! I don't mind. I've been pretty busy between school and ballet practice lately, haha. And really? Three projects for every subject? That is a little ridiculous. I'm not more interesting, though ;) It was my father's idea to get me into knife throwing, not mine. Honestly, I'd probably just drop it completely if it weren't for him.

And I'm _not_ "out of your league" haha.

Why does everyone there make fun of you for gymnastics? Are they that threatened by someone being able to do things they can't? Hmm.

I don't mind you getting "sappy and sentimental" haha. Shows what kind of person you are :)

I think that the rainforests would be interesting to explore! As for me, I would probably explore the deep depths of the oceans. Did you know somewhere around 95% of the oceans are still unexplored? Imagine what we could find there if money wasn't a problem!

My favorite time of day would probably be very early in the morning. Some time between 4-6 before everyone else has woken up, but the sky is just starting to light up. It's always quiet and peaceful. Everyone always says I'm crazy for liking the morning because they all like to sleep in until late haha.

Question for you: What's your family like? Do you have any siblings?

Natasha

* * *

January 16, 2014

Dear Natasha,

It keeps throwing me off at first that you write the date before the month haha.

Alright, maybe not 3 projects in _every_ subject, but it sure felt like it! And knife throwing's that bad, huh? Why'd your dad make you do it? Just because?

CLEARLY everyone feels super threatened by the boy who can stick his feet behind his head and bend over backwards into a hand-stand ;) I think that the oceans would be sweet to explore, too! But I'd just be a little freaked out by the, uh, lack of oxygen haha. Sure, submarines are great, but… They can also break? Like, I just don't think I'd be able to do it. Sigh. But I'm all for other people exploring them and sharing their discoveries!

Oh, god, you're a morning person. Alright. I mean, mornings are aaaaaalright, but if I don't get at least 2 pots of coffee, I won't wake up before 9 am. It just won't happen. At all. My favorite time of day is lunch time, definitely. It's not too early, the sun's warm. There's food. So much food. People won't look at you weird if you're still drinking coffee ;)

And actually, I'm adopted! I never knew my parents and I have no idea if I have any blood-related siblings. But my foster parents are pretty cool. They're really nice and didn't have any kids of their own, so I'm an only child. What about you?

And a new question, because I completely forgot to ask it in my first e-mail: When's your birthday?

Sincerely,

Clint

* * *

23 January, 2014

Clint,

Haha! Well it's the 23rd of January, so why would I say it's the January of 23rds?

I _thought_ three projects per subject was a little extreme ;). It's not like knife throwing is _bad_, it's just boring. I'm not sure why my father wanted me to get into it, to be honest.

So are you claustrophobic? That could explain why you'd be afraid to be in a submarine. But you don't technically have to be in a submarine to explore the oceans: you could make a robot to do it for you! :).

And yes, I'm a morning person haha. I don't really drink coffee _too much_. Normal, plain coffee, at least. I typically like to stick to sweeter drinks. But lunchtime is a good time of day, too! I agree, the sun is shining, there's good food…

You're adopted? Do you even know your real parent's names? (Just tell me if I'm getting too insensitive or rude or anything) It's just my father and I over here. No siblings, my mother died when I was really young. I don't really remember her much…

And my birthday is the 22nd of November :) Yours?

Question: Is it true that in America you pledge to your flag every day at school? o_O.

Natasha

* * *

January 28, 2014

Dear Natasha,

"The January of 23rds" Nat, I'm pretty sure _no one _says it like that hahaha :D No, we just say "It's January 23rd!" Nice and simple. But I _guess_ your way makes sense too ;)

I don't know if I'd classify myself as full-on claustrophobic… Maybe just… Half. Half claustrophobic. Because that definitely makes sense hahaha. And alright, you raise a fair point, I didn't think about robots doing all the work ;)

God, I don't know how anyone manages without coffee. Without five pots of coffee a day. At the very least. Bare minimum, here. Do you guys have Starbucks, there? Because I know they have tons of sweeter drinks to pick from!

Yeah, I'm adopted. My real parents were "Harold and Edith". Probably sound like the weirdest names ever to you, right? Hahah. And no, you're not being rude, it's all cool. Again, I didn't know my parents, so I don't really mind much, I'm used to it.

My birthday's June 18th! I'm a Summer baby haha.

And _okay_ when you put it like _that_, it sounds a little creepy. But it's not every day we say the pledge! It's usually only on Fridays at my school. I do know there are a ton that say it every day though…

Alright, now I have to come up with another question. Ummmm.

What is… The most exciting thing you've ever done?

Sincerely,

Clint

PS. I can't believe it's already almost been a month and I'm still remembering to do this pen-pal thing! :D

* * *

31 January, 2014

Clint,

Right, right, right. That's what I meant! I just… Forgot. Hahaha

"Half claustrophobic," huh? Yeaaaah, _definitely_ makes sense. (Eye roll)

Yes, we have Starbucks! But we probably don't have all the same drinks as you do in America. And do you really drink at least five pots a day? Or are you just exaggerating again? Because that sounds so extreme! How wouldn't you be bouncing off of the walls all the time?

From a Russian standpoint, yes, the names sound funny :) But I watch plenty of American films and tv, so I'm very used to English names :) I'm glad you didn't find my questions rude or anything, though! Some people get very upset when talking about things like that, I wasn't sure how you'd react…

The most exciting thing I've ever done? Hmmmm…. I'd probably have to go with the time I snuck into a upper-class ball in Moscow ;) I found an old dress that fit me and just acted like I knew what I was doing and that I was supposed to be there haha.

Question: What do you think about me?

Natasha


	2. February

February 1, 2014

Dear Natasha,

What do I think about you? Well, from what I gather, you're a really fun person to be around. Clearly, you're adventurous, which is awesome! You're sweet, sarcastic, and just overall pleasant to talk to :) I'm really glad that I got you as a pen-pal, I honestly don't think I would've kept this up even _this long_ if you weren't. Yeah. You're. You're really cool haha.

Anyways! Yeah, it'd make sense if you guys didn't have the same drinks as us, being a different country and all. But they can't be _that_ different, can they? Huh.

And no! I'm totally not exaggerating! Caffeine barely does anything for me anymore. I just need more and more. So really. I do drink like 5 pots throughout the day ;D Sometimes if I'm really tired it'll be more!

Really? What kind of shows and movies do you like to watch? Maybe I've seen some of them :O

I can't even answer my own question, though, I basically haven't done anything exciting in my life. Did you really sneak into a ball? You're craaaazy! Hahaha. No, but pretty much the most exciting thing I've ever done is go to an amusement park. Thrilling, right?

And now my question iiiiis… What do _you _think about _me_?

Best regards,

Clint

PS. Can we exchange pictures? Are we at that point yet? I'm so curious as to what you actually look like- it's cool if you're not comfortable with it, though, I understand!

* * *

6 February, 2014

Clint,

I think you're a dork.

Okay, not really. No, I think you're cool, too :). You're really really sweet and entertaining to talk to. I don't think I would have lasted this long using e-mail as the only way of talking with anyone else, either, haha. You're clearly very caring about important things and quite 'charming' ;) (if not a little awkward. But that's okay, I'm awkward, too.)

I think I might actually look that up, because now I'm curious. A lot of the drinks are very bitter here. We would have to add a lot of sugar to make them sweet.

I still can't believe you have to drink that much coffee a day. Doesn't that get expensive? Are you running to the bathroom every two minutes?! I bet I would be haha.

Normally I just watch action films. I really like spy films, though. And horror ones! Those ones might be my favourite, actually, now that I think about it. The one I like the most right now is from last year… You probably haven't heard of it… :/

And yes! I really snuck into the ball! It was hosted at a rich man's mansion that I'd always been curious about. I had to go!

Boring question for you because it's late and I can't think of anything: What colour is your favourite?

Natasha

*Image file attached*

* * *

February 11, 2014

Dear Natasha,

Alright, first of all: holy _shit. Holy shit. _When you were describing yourself, you didn't do yourself justice by a _long shot_. You are _definitely_. By _far_. The most beautiful girl I've ever seen. In my life. Ever. God. I'm nervous to send my picture now, I'm essentially a potato in comparison. Oh my god. Holy shit.

Okay anyway...haha. I'm not awkward I'm never awkward I don't know what you're talking about "awkward" (this entire e-mail so far is awkward, I bet. Whoops.)

Coffee is less expensive when you make it yourself, obviously. So I just spent money up front on a really nice big coffee maker. It'll make like, 12 cups at once. The coffee grounds? That can get expensive because of how quickly I go through it. But it's still no where near the cost I used to pay going out and buying coffee from Starbucks every day.

And what's the movie called? You've made me curious! :)

My favorite color is probably purple. Scratch that. Definitely purple. What about yours? :P

My question for youuuuu is…. If you could only eat one food for the rest of the year, what would it be?

Sincerely,

Clint

*Image file attached*

* * *

16 February, 2014

Clint,

I don't understand how you think you look like a "potato" in comparison. You could probably make _mashed potatoes_ just by squeezing one between your arms. Oh my god. No. No you are definitely incredibly handsome. Don't say you're a potato. You're not a potato.

(See? I told you I'm awkward too :) haha)

Well, at least you're (kind of) saving money? Besides having to buy all the coffee grounds hahaha.

And the film is called "Devil's Pass". It's about this group of uni students that are making a documentary about these hikers that died in Russia. They travel to the same mountain to "recreate" the incident and things… Go wrong… I won't spoil it for you in case you wanted to watch it ;)

What a coincidence, my favourite is purple, too! If I could only eat one food for the rest of the year, it would probably be salad. Because if you think about it, anything you cut up and put in a bowl could count as a salad hahaha

My question for you: What is your favourite thing to do?

Natasha

* * *

February 23, 2014

Dear Natasha,

Oh, jeez. To have someone so attractive call me handsome. Way to make me blush, haha :P No, but thank you. That actually means a lot :)

That movie was actually pretty good! I (of course) looked it up first and did a little research on the Dyatlov Pass Incident… The whole thing is really kinda creepy. I really don't think it was "paranormal activity", though. It was probably just. Something normal. That caused it. I don't know. But the movie was good!

And oh, we have the same favorite color?! Clearly, we're a match made in heaven ;)

Honestly if I could only eat one food for the rest of the year it would be pizza. I've probably eaten more pizza than the rest of my state combined.

My favorite thing to do? Sleep. Nap. Snooze. Pass out. Et cetera, et cetera. Hahaha

Alright, and your question… It's completely, you know, out of curiosity, I'm not… Coming onto you or anything… Are you dating anyone?

Sincerely,

Clint

PS. ...Was that too bold? o_O

* * *

28 February, 2014

Clint,

I only called you handsome because it's the truth, you know. You aren't handsome because I said you were, I was merely observing the fact.

I've always been tempted to go to Dyatlov's Pass, but it's over a day away by car! And that's without any stopping. At a constant rate of speed. So I decided to just forget about it :/.

_Clearly_ if we have the same favourite colour we're perfect for one another ;P haha

That's really funny, I've actually never once eaten pizza. It's been offered to me before, but I've never had any!

I like the sound of your favourite thing to do, hahaha. Speaking of sleeping, that's actually what I should be doing…

And your question is just out of curiosity, hmm? There's no 'hidden motives'? ;) No, I'm not dating anyone. Are you?

Anyways, your question: have you ever been outside of your country? If so, where else have you been?

Natasha


	3. March

March 1, 2014

Dear Natasha,

If I lived in Russia, I'd probably try and steer clear of Dyatlov's Pass. Seriously don't go there didn't you watch the movie at all?! Goodness, girl.

Also, I'm going to try and ask this calmly but: HOW THE HELL HAVE YOU NEVER EATEN PIZZA BEFORE. YOU HAVE NOT _LIVED_. That's it. If we ever end up meeting, you're trying pizza. That's the first thing we'll do. Get pizza. Holy shit you've never. Oh my god.

Okay, there may have been a slight hidden motive there, but I mean.

No, I'm not dating anyone haha.

I've been to Canada! That counts that's another country. Even though it's just right above me. Sigh. What I really want is to travel the globe one day. Fingers crossed!

Alright this is totally 100% okay if you say no, but… Do you want to maybe Skype sometime? It seems easier than… This. I mean, we can keep this up, too! But. I don't know. Umm. Yeah. Just in case you do want to, my user is .

Sincerely,  
Clint

* * *

5 March, 2014

Clint,

Haha! Where's your sense of adventure?! If I lived closer, I'd definitely be going. Every weekend ;)

And yeah, alright, I'll remember that the next time I'm all the way on the opposite side of the planet :P Hahaha, I "haven't lived" because I haven't had pizza, and yet I've done more exciting things than you have... Amazing ;)

Canada counts! It is another country. But Canada and the USA are so similar, I think. You need to visit somewhere that has a culture different to yours! It's a lot more fun and remarkable :)

I would be completely okay with Skyping! We'll have to try and figure out a time, though, because again: different sides of the planet… I just checked, and it looks like I'm 9 hours ahead… Yeah, we'll just have to work something out haha. My user is black_widow1 . We should definitely keep e-mailing, too, though, because I'm sure we'll be able to do that more often than Skyping.

Natasha

* * *

March 7, 2014

Dear Natasha,

"Black widow"... Should I be concerned? ;)

No, but, I can't believe you're actually up for Skyping! Okay, I can stay up late if you wanted to go for morning. Because I definitely won't be awake for Skyping in the morning.

So when it's… Say it's midnight here. It would be 9 am there. If it's 11 at night here, it's 8 am there. It just depends how early you want to Skype. (Side note, I literally just had to make a diagram of a clock and draw it out to make sure. Jeez, I can do basic math…) And keeping up with e-mailing sounds good to me!

Anyways, just let me know! :)

Sincerely,

Clint

* * *

9 March, 2014

Clint,

Nah, you shouldn't be concerned ;D It was just an old nickname from a friend. She thought it would be funny...

Okay, how about 10 at night your time this weekend? For you it would be the night of the 15th, for me the morning of the 16th? I can handle Skyping at 7 in the morning ;)

Hope to hear from you soon so we can plan this out!

Natasha

* * *

March 10, 2014

Dear Natasha,

That sounds great! 10pm/7am sounds like a plan. Now I just have to figure out how to keep you entertained so you don't get bored with me hahaha.

Alright! I guess I'll… Talk to you in a couple of days… :O (Totally not nervous now or anything, nope.)

Sincerely,

Clint

* * *

11 March, 2014

Clint

Hahaha, don't worry. I'll be doing the exact same thing, I assure you. So now, with both of us knowing this, it'll either be really good… Or really awful… Because we'll both be sitting there going "god, what am I supposed to say please don't think I'm boring I'm sorry". But then we'll both know the other is thinking the same thing? I don't know haha.

Talk to you soon :)

Natasha

* * *

March 16, 2014

Dear Natasha,

Wow. _Wow_. Wow!

I don't think I can say "wow" enough.

Have I mentioned before that you're beautiful? Because you're even more beautiful in motion.

...That sounded kind of weird, didn't it? I'm not sure how to word that so it sounds less creepy, sorry…

But really. I meant it whenever that was when I said you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. And your _accent_! It's so fucking adorable. I know I said that a lot last night. I'm sorry. I was just kind of… Enchanted by you? (Ha haaaah Clint what are you saying)

Anyways, other than being entranced by your beauty and loving your voice, I had so much fun talking to you! I don't think I've laughed like that in months- I'm surprised I didn't accidentally wake up my parents… (I think I didn't, anyways…) I seriously didn't even notice that 3 hours had gone by until you said you had to go. I'm pretty sure I could've talked to you all night.

Sincerely,

Clint

* * *

17 March, 2014

Dear Clint,

Oh my god. You going on about my accent and my looks made me blush so much. I'm so glad no one was around. I was so flustered I wasn't able to talk about how handsome _you _are and how much I loved _your voice_! Your voice is different than I expected, but it's unique and I enjoy listening to it very much :) Also, it was very cute how you started talking when you got tired… How your words started to mix together and you sounded all sleepy.

I'm sure it would've been impossible for you to not have waken up your parents! I didn't even think about that hahaha.

I didn't notice how much time had gone by either until I realized I was going to be late to visiting a friend… If I didn't have anywhere to be, I think we would have talked hours longer haha. Not that I would have minded, of course.

I think we should definitely Skype more often. What are you doing this next weekend?

Natasha

* * *

March 18, 2014

Dear Natasha,

Aww, you wrote "dear" next to my name this time! ;)

And I'm glad you like my voice, because I hope you'll be hearing it much more often! This weekend I'm busy, though :/ I have a competition for school and I'm going to be gone the entire time. Ugh. I'm sorry. Are you busy the weekend of the 29th/30th? Because I'm completely free then! I'm sorry. I really would much rather talk to you for a few hours than go to the stupid school thing. It's going to be so boring. It is _every year_. But, unfortunately, it's for a grade. Ugh.

Also, I asked my parents, and _somehow_ they didn't wake up. Really, I have no idea how either hahaha.

Well, keep me posted about the 29th/30th! I really hope we can talk then! If not, e-mail will have to do for another week! (Sigh) Haha, I hope you have a good week :)

Sincerely,

Clint

* * *

19 March, 2014

Dear Clint,

Yes, I put "dear" next to your name. You're "dear" to me now ;). That's so disappointing that you're basically forced to go to the competition! Don't they know you should be talking to me?! Ridiculous. I think I'm free the weekend after, though, so we should be good then! Does the same time work for you? The 10pm? Because it still works for me :)

I hope you have a good week, too! (Even though it's half-way over now...haha)

Natasha

* * *

March 20, 2014

Dear Natasha,

Damn, we're getting a lot faster at replying this week. It's probably because of the Skype call. We're both so "enamored" by one another that we can't stand the idea of not talking to each other every day.

Every other day. Does it count as every day? I mean. We're replying every other day. If that. Okay I'm not making sense anymore I'll stop.

And the school thing is seriously unfair. They make us go _every damn year_ to compete in the same stupid thing. At least this'll be my last year ever going? That's a plus, I guess. Still have to suffer through it, though.

Anyway, yes, the same time works for me! :)

Sincerely,

Clint

* * *

21 March, 2014

Dear Clint,

Good luck at the competition this weekend! Even if the whole thing is an annoying bore, I still hope things go well for you! :) Like you said, it is your last year, I'm sure you'll make it through.

And your "every other day" thing _almost_ made sense. You just worded it poorly. I understood what you meant, though, haha.

I'm glad we could work out a new time to Skype! Excited for next weekend. It'll be a nice thing to help me relax after next week. I have 2 big exams coming up… Basically all I'll be doing the next few days is study, study, study!

Natasha

* * *

March 24, 2014

Dear Natasha,

I actually won first prize this year! Maybe you're like some good luck charm, I've never actually won before... ;)

That sucks about all the tests this week. I hope you do good! But I know you will, you're incredibly smart. Anyway, good luck haha.

Just don't forget our "Skype date" with all of that studying! I'll cry if you do! I swear! Hahaha :)

Sincerely,

Clint

* * *

29 March, 2014

Dear Clint,

Ugh. I'm definitely in need of our Skype date tomorrow (though, it'll look like today for you because of the date for me haha.) I apologize in advance if all that comes out of my mouth is vocabulary words, though, because that's basically all that's in my brain right now.

As far as I know, I did very well on my exams, though. So all the studying last minute payed off! :)

I think I'm going to go take a long bubble bath and drink some hot tea… Ughhhh.

Looking forwards to talking to you soon :)

Natasha

* * *

March 30, 2014

Dear Natasha,

I'm writing this literally seconds after our Skype date. It's 3 am. I don't think I'm going to be able to sleep. I can't believe we were on Skype for _6 hours_. How did that happen?! A better question: How are you not sick of me yet?! I would be sick of me haha. But then the biggest question I have: _how on Earth did I get you to agree to go out with me?!_

God, I couldn't stop smiling. I still can't stop smiling! Like we said. This long-distance stuff is going to be a ton of work. But we've made a friendship work long-distance so far, haven't we? An actual relationship shouldn't be _that_ much harder, right? Fingers crossed.

….I'm sorry, I still can't get over it. I seriously. I'm just grinning at my keyboard like an idiot while typing this. How did I get you to agree? Someone as witty and beautiful and as charming as you?

I'm gonna stop this now before I say anything else totally stupid and embarrassing hahaha.

I'll text you after I wake up, yeah? I hope you have a good rest of your day :)

Yours,

Clint


End file.
